Wii U Sold Better Than GameCube at Launch; The GC's Been Surpassing It Ever Since Then

[Nz17]

Month 36 (A.K.A. Year 3): 11MM Wii U's sold, yet 17MM GameCubes sold during the same amount of time.

Source: https://twitter.com/ZhugeEX/status/706574569809829889/

[Tanooki]

That's sad but inevitable given what happened. At least in the 5 years that Gamecube existed it got solid third party games for more than half of that time, and beyond that a good many actually fun unique titles from all parties involved. Even the genres that got very light/minimal support on the GC still sadly is more than can be said for WiiU. Holes like that all contribute to it. At least, lame mini-DVD aside the GC tried to be in parity with the generation and had it not been for the large scale snubs on certain games never showing up which would have driven some great numbers it did alright in that battle for second place as no one would catch the PS2, just the scraps. The WiiU can't even catch the scraps, it just grabs the people looking for a family friendly system or are big time Nintendo fans who need their games or find no fault in their moves which is a shame.

[Nz17]

Well actually:

What needs to be taken into account is that
1. The Gamecube launched at $199 compared to Wii U at $299
2. GCN was $99 after 23 months.

[Tanooki]

Yeah that did help too, but it also did actually get game support, so it's a double damage problem with WiiU -- price and nothing to do unless you want Nintendo games.

[Gameguy]

I'm surprised that the Wii U has been out for 3 years already, it doesn't feel like it to me. I barely know anything about it so it feels like it just came out a few months ago. The only game I really know about on it is Splatoon and I'm not into multiplayer games so I don't have much interest in it. Every other game I know about seems to be a sequel to an existing franchise, or a remake. There's this new Twilight Princess remake, which is a remake of a Wii game that was already a port of a Gamecube game. Get it now before it's remade again in 4K for the new Nintendo console!

With the Gamecube I had little interest in it when it was current, but I at least knew about multiple games exclusive to it. Like Pikmin, Metroid Prime, Zelda Windwaker, Zelda Twilight Princess, Luigi's Mansion, Animal Crossing, Super Mario Sunshine, etc. Even the games that were sequels or remakes on it were more interesting at the time, Paper Mario, Super Smash Bros, Mario Kart, Resident Evil remakes, Metal Gear remake, etc. Today I have little interest in new sequels or remakes, getting another Mario Kart or Super Smash Bros, etc. I just don't care anymore, I'd rather just play the older versions which I already enjoy thoroughly.

[Nz17]

Gameguy, what's your opinion on Super Mario Maker?

[Niku-Sama]

the game cube being only $100 and there were a few games I wanted for it is why I got mine. even got that pokemon one for $100
that and the accessories were pretty cheap too, the wavebird controllers, I think I bought a whole set for about $75 over time, new. kind of kicking my self for not getting component cables or the game boy player when it was new but thinking about it I don't think the pokemon GC had the digital out and I managed to snag a used GB player and disc for ~$15 used at game stop when they were blowing out GC games

[Gameguy]

Gameguy, what's your opinion on Super Mario Maker?

I'm not against it, but it still slips my mind often. Making your own levels is always fun, it's been big for Doom and Duke Nukem 3D, but I've personally never focused on fan made levels or spent much time designing levels. To me it's more of an extra feature to be included as a bonus with something else rather than a dedicated stand alone product. There's not as much immersion in a game when the levels are created randomly, with the real Mario games you believe those levels are part of a world and exist within that universe and flow together. It's how I feel with most games even with varied gameplay and level design, if well designed it all flows together. Maybe I'd feel different if I played it, it's just currently from what I see I don't have a strong desire to seek it out.

[Tanooki]

I'm not against it, but it still slips my mind often. Making your own levels is always fun, it's been big for Doom and Duke Nukem 3D, but I've personally never focused on fan made levels or spent much time designing levels. To me it's more of an extra feature to be included as a bonus with something else rather than a dedicated stand alone product. There's not as much immersion in a game when the levels are created randomly, with the real Mario games you believe those levels are part of a world and exist within that universe and flow together. It's how I feel with most games even with varied gameplay and level design, if well designed it all flows together. Maybe I'd feel different if I played it, it's just currently from what I see I don't have a strong desire to seek it out.

I agree with this. I've got the same problem/feel for this too. DOOM, Duke, more modern-- Little Big Planet, and I never make stuff as I don't like it and I don't have time for it, I like to play. When LBP got even more into making and kind of throwing the existing game as a secondary thing I lost interest in the franchise. Mario Maker is good and all, but I wouldn't buy it. I'd love it as a tool they'd slap on an existing full Mario game as something to enjoy around the game or once it is done kind of like the modern classic Mario Bros arcade game stuck on those SM Advance carts for GBA.

[bb_hood]

Mario Maker is alot more than just a small tool that you mess around with for a few minutes. Its definitly the best 2d Mario game, and quite possibly the best Mario game of all time. The game is not just about designing levels, but playing other people's levels as well.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bbDGGUysCuE

[Tanooki]

Which again I have no interest in doing, playing other peoples personal efforts which I didn't like doing or want to do with LBP. It's nothing new, I pretty much ignored amateur WADS in the mid/early 90s for DOOM/DOOM2 as they came out.

[kupomogli]

Well actually:

What needs to be taken into account is that
1. The Gamecube launched at $199 compared to Wii U at $299
2. GCN was $99 after 23 months.

I think this is the main reason why the Wii U has failed to do as well as it could have. Nintendo traditionally keeps their games high priced, but this is the first time they've never dropped the price to their console. If every year they had a price drop or even took a loss at the start of the generation, they may have got enough of a fanbase who purchased third party title to continue to receive third party support to this very day and maybe the Wii U would actually have a bit longer of a life cycle.

[Tanooki]

I'd buy that. Had it dropped $50/yr so that it would be like what $150 now? I think it would have flown off the shelf after the first year when it started to sputter. NCL/NOA would have tipped off developers under NDA quietly of the drop and it would have maybe nudged a few to give it another 12 months to see if it stayed flat, grew at all, or dropped. WiiU had the potential to be salvaged, not well, but at least Gamecube well probably in that it would have gone up some and then the third parties would have bailed when they bailed on PS3/360.